Yes, it's time for another edition of JD Looks Behind Fences and Into Holes So You Don't Have To, and we start the rundown with two new spots to add to the lineup, where dirt has just begun to be moved: 71 Potomac, the 264-unit sibling to Dock 79 at Florida Rock, and "Square 696," Tishman Speyer's still-not-publicly-unveiled residential and retail project on the block bounded by I, K, 1st, and Half Streets. Plus I'll add an up-to-date shot of the excavation at Paradigm's 1000 1st Street project, just because it doesn't fit anywhere else in this post:

(Note that I'm giving Tishman a few more weeks before I craft my own rendering. And thanks to the 71 Potomac folks for the pretty wood fences with holes in them that are perfect for snooping bloggers to look through!)

Next, let's talk about the "hybrid" hole in the ground at 1250 Half Street, aka the old Monument Valley site just across N Street from Nats Park. This is where two cranes mark the slow beginnings of vertical construction at the bottom of the hole, while six-plus floors of construction are already complete at the north end of the project, since that part of the hole was dug and the foundation was completed back in 2007 when Monument thought it would be building out the entire block instead of just the 55 M office building. This is where a two-phase project with up to 440 units of residential and more than 60,000 square feet of retail will be built:

(I need this project to hurry up and get to ground level because it's impossible to get a shot of the bottom of the hole without going up to a nearby roof.)

Now we'll move to the corner of South Capitol and M, where the National Association of Broadcasters HQ is graduating from hole-in-the-ground to skeleton, while its sibling, the condo building Avidian, is still not quite yet visible above the fence line. I forgot to walk down to get a photo through the fence of the Avidian footprint, so instead I'll just include this very bad shot I took a few weeks ago of the first hints of construction on the new Douglass Bridge, because it needs to be documented.

Three more projects are on their way upwards, including the Garrett at 2nd and I and the co-projects Parcel L residential/Thompson Hotel hole at 3rd and Tingey in the Yards shown here. (I forgot to get a shot of the Parc Riverside II hole. Probably looks like a hole with concrete and rebar, like the others):

So, in case you're not counting, that's nine projects either still below ground or just at ground level (or 10 if you include the permanently below-ground Virginia Avenue Tunnel, or 11 if you include the currently below-water Douglass Bridge work).

Then you can add those to the eight other projects that are above-ground, topped out, or nearing completion, and you can understand why it's okay to feel like the neighborhood is still a perpetual construction site, and will be for a while yet. Here's shots of seven of them, in order of progress: the 99 M office building, the DC Water headquarters, the Bower condos and sibling Parcel O rental building, and additional residential projects 2 I Street, Square 769N, and West Half (alas, I haven't made it over recently to check out the status of the Emblem condo project at 8th and Virginia, so I'm one short):

202_cyclist says: (4/20/18 4:55 PM)JD— how cool would it be if you had a drone? Then you could look over the fences!

JD says: (4/20/18 4:57 PM)I'm guessing Amazon would shoot it down. And other than that, there won't be many holes left!

malatesta says: (4/20/18 7:59 PM)I actually have no idea what a drone costs, or what the cost-benefit analysis would look like in deciding whether to get one, but I feel like by the time the lot across I st from Park Chelsea gets under development the robots will have taken over anyway.

dcgent says: (4/22/18 10:57 AM)Has Dacha pulled out of Dock79, or been kicked out? The corner where I thought it was going now says "retail space available"

malatesta says: (4/22/18 2:18 PM)I didn't get super close to it on my run today, but it seemed like the new retail space available sign was on the southwest corner, and I think Dacha is supposed kt be on the northeast corner, facing the stadium.

Also, I saw that there's a second tower crane up at Parcel L so the crane count is 13 now.

dcgent says: (4/22/18 6:25 PM)Perhaps but I thoght all three were on the river. JD previously wrote about Dacha: It will occupy the space along the riverwalk on the building's southwest corner--closest to Bardo, for some hot beer garden-on-beer garden action.

That's where the space availabe sign is

JD says: (4/23/18 8:08 PM)How do people feel about convening at the Brig on Thursday, May 10?

202_cyclist says: (4/23/18 9:10 PM)Dang! I would be there but one of the new buildings in the neighborhood is hosting a promotional event that evening.

202_cyclist says: (4/24/18 7:30 AM)May 17 works and that is Bike to Work Day!

RMP says: (4/24/18 7:39 AM)May 17th is a perfectly nice date but isn't Bike to Work Day on May 18th?

202_cyclist says: (4/24/18 8:32 AM)@RMP— you’re correct, I was insufficiently caffeinated this morning. Regardless, everyone should attend the JD Land happy hour and then bike to work the next day.

CJBabyDaddy says: (4/24/18 7:25 PM)The 17th? That’s the evening I normally set aside for all things related to my sock drawer. Moving that to another day will throw off my entire month of May. What the heck. Count me in!

Ampersand says: (4/25/18 11:29 AM)I had an unpleasant surprise this morning when I attempted to dock a bikeshare at 1st and K - apparently the station has been (re?)moved. I docked at NJ and M instead. The app claims the station is now across the street and up the block, but I didn't see it this morning and haven't gone to confirm.

The bikeshare dock is still there, just moved a little! I had the same confusion yesterday.

It's now closer to I street on the east side of the street, right up against the building.

dcgent says: (4/25/18 2:29 PM)Since I started the rumor Dacha was out, i should kill it--Dacha reportedly says it is still on, but not til later summer/fall

RMP says: (4/25/18 2:41 PM)I obviously know nothing about owning and operating a beer garden, but it seems like if I were going to open one directly across from the ballpark, doing it at the very end of the baseball season wouldn't be my strategy.

202_cyclist says: (4/25/18 3:08 PM)@RMP-- I concur, especially since it unfortunately doesn't look like the Nats will be playing this October.

NavyYardGuy says: (4/25/18 3:11 PM)That is a hot take @202_cyclist--it's still alot of baseball yet to be played, and they were better of w/ Dusty IMHO.

RMP says: (4/26/18 1:10 PM)The rooftop hop is back again this year. Looks like 1221 Van, Agora, Dock 79, F1rst and One Hill South are the participating buildings. IIRC the first two are new this year and the others participated last year.

JES says: (4/26/18 3:51 PM)Yeah, Dacha is supposed to be on the northeast corner, next to Salt Line. It technically faces the water from there on the east side since it's adjascent to the park and you can see the river. The signage wrap there with the Dacha logo says "Coming soon to this space," which is enough confirmation for me that that's where its going.

The Nats will probably be fine; it's hard to string together a lot of wins when so much of your lineup's firepower (Eaton, Rendon, and Murph) is on the DL. We just need to tread water and not fall double-digits behind the Mets until we slowly get those guys back.

Ampersand says: (4/26/18 4:05 PM)@RMP thanks for the tip! I will hopefully make it this year!

Snacks says: (4/27/18 8:46 AM)@RMP How does one get info on the rooftop hop and how would i sign up??

RMP says: (4/27/18 8:58 AM)It was in the Capitol Riverfront newsletter, on their Facebook page, etc.

Snacks says: (4/27/18 12:14 PM)@RMP Ahh ok, thanks. I don't have much social media (any) so i'll have to signup for the Capitol Riverfront newsletter.

caphillguy says: (4/28/18 7:50 AM)The remaining crane has come down at Parcel O, so the count is back down to 12.

JD says: (4/28/18 10:34 AM)And the crane is coming down at 3rd and L this morning, so that's 11.

malatesta says: (4/28/18 10:58 AM)So the next chance for a new crane count record is if cranes at 71 Potomac, square 696 and 1000 1st are up before they take down the crane at 2 I st.

caphillguy says: (4/28/18 1:09 PM)I wouldn't be surprised if the north crane at 1250 Half comes down within the next month or two also - I'm guessing they won't need two once the north half of the building tops out.

202_cyclist says: (4/29/18 11:00 PM)It’s no Whole Foods update but across the street from the Whole Foods on New Jersey Ave it looks like some kind of public space is being built next to the sidewalk, adjacent to the CSX right-of-way.

conngs0 says: (5/1/18 9:06 AM)The stabbing death at the Capper Senior residence is indeed tragic and quite shocking. While the Washington Post article is a little short on context or background for this particular event (presumably the legal proceedings will illuminate us), the NBC Washington story had a bit more.

However, I think I'm left with more questions about what (if any) rules exist to restrict who is in this particular DCHA building (and all other DCHA residences, for that matter). Presumably only seniors (by some definition) are allowed to be permanent residents of this one. But surely residents can have visitors, so it might be very difficult to enforce such rules. It's a terrible shame that at least some folks don't feel safe there.

JD says: (5/1/18 4:08 PM)Sorry to be not posting a lot--was in Chicago handing out the first Mr. JDLand Scholarship, and now trying to recover from that as well as all the falderal leading up to it.

But I do have a tidbit: looks like 71 Potomac is going to be called The Maren. Groundbreaking invite has just gone out for later in May.

202_cyclist says: (5/1/18 4:24 PM)JD-- that sounds like a very nice way to honor Mr. JD Land.

The Maren? Boo! Dock 80 sounded so much better.

JES says: (5/3/18 3:35 PM)The dog park going in by WF is gonna be permanent, right? Since they can't build a building that close to the freeway?

202_cyclist says: (5/4/18 11:26 AM)It would be nice to see this here in DC.

202_cyclist says: (5/7/18 11:38 AM)@RMP-- a group of people decided to have a dance party outside of our apartment on NJ Ave at 2:45 AM this morning. Not to be an old curmudgeon, but I hope no bars in the immediate proximity of us have the 24 hour liquor licences.